The Association and the Journal must be commended for warning against Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS): “ENDS have the potential to addict a new generation of youth to nicotine and reverse more than 50 years of progress in tobacco control.”(1)
This contrasts with hopes and even hypes from Europe. Public Health England, the executive agency in charge of nation's health and wellbeing, just claimed “e-cigarettes were 95% less harmful than normal cigarettes”.(2) Not only the review is not evidence based but also it fails to model the epidemics.(3)
In France, “experts” even promote ENDS for smoking cessation and are abusive to those who challenge their opinion.(4) As a clinician relying on Evidence-Based-Medicine, for smoking cessation I simply prescribe psychotherapy plus a combination of various forms of nicotine replacement therapy or plus varenicline.
In Europe, experts are fooled by the “harm reduction” motto, as before with low tar and light cigarettes. The e-cigarette has been rapidly legitimated by the tobacco industry which had at an early stage bought e-cigarette companies and applied for patents. Who could believe this is to reduce cigarette smoking prevalence/incidence? The craze for ENDS is also an indicator that the system is unable to assist smokers and provide them access to evidence-based treatment for cessation!(5) Last, empiricism may deadly harm, even for preventive medicine (eg. the prone position to prevent cot death)....

The Association and the Journal must be commended for warning against Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS): “ENDS have the potential to addict a new generation of youth to nicotine and reverse more than 50 years of progress in tobacco control.”(1)
This contrasts with hopes and even hypes from Europe. Public Health England, the executive agency in charge of nation's health and wellbeing, just claimed “e-cigarettes were 95% less harmful than normal cigarettes”.(2) Not only the review is not evidence based but also it fails to model the epidemics.(3)
In France, “experts” even promote ENDS for smoking cessation and are abusive to those who challenge their opinion.(4) As a clinician relying on Evidence-Based-Medicine, for smoking cessation I simply prescribe psychotherapy plus a combination of various forms of nicotine replacement therapy or plus varenicline.
In Europe, experts are fooled by the “harm reduction” motto, as before with low tar and light cigarettes. The e-cigarette has been rapidly legitimated by the tobacco industry which had at an early stage bought e-cigarette companies and applied for patents. Who could believe this is to reduce cigarette smoking prevalence/incidence? The craze for ENDS is also an indicator that the system is unable to assist smokers and provide them access to evidence-based treatment for cessation!(5) Last, empiricism may deadly harm, even for preventive medicine (eg. the prone position to prevent cot death).
“Shooting up” nicotine plus flavour with ENDS is a freeway to addiction. I hope the Association’s statement will modify the European cognitive dissonance and the FDA enduring inertia. Bans, even total, have been implemented (eg. Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, the Seychelles and Uruguay). FDA seems to have lost its way, granting authorization for newer products as the “Heat-Not-Burn Cigarette” (Revo "revolutionary cigarettes" and HeatSticks from RJ Reynolds and Philip Morris, respectively).